Oct 12 Be Fabulous. Be a Fabric Designer

Design and print your own fabrics.

Because, according to Suzelle, anybody can!

A quick finger count gives me more than ten of the most well-known fabric houses in Johannesburg alone, all of which stock a myriad of local and international design house libraries – anything from plains and geometrics to florals and pictorials. That doesn’t even include your options in terms of fabric and fibre type. To say that’s a lot to choose from is an understatement. It can be incredibly overwhelming if you don’t have a good idea of what you’re looking for and if you do, you’re bound to find the perfect piece of fabric for your new home deco project.

Because anybody can be fabulous with fabric

But what if, just say now, for argument’s sake, you saw a design in a shop about five years ago and can’t find it or anything like it anywhere, as was the case with a client; or you’re an artist yourself and you would like to see your own unique designs on your walls or bed?

Beyond Innovation is a digital printing company specialising in textiles. Although they do a lot of corporate and commercial branding, they also produce the most breathtaking and colourful designer fabrics for residential use.

The process is incredibly simple

You choose the perfect natural or synthetic fabric for your project: 100% cotton or linen in different weaves such as percale, twill, textured, light or heavy; or polyester, spandex, chiffon, etc.

You send them your design, or choose from their range of designs... or get their graphic designer to assist you with a design (yes, in the land of textiles the possibilities are endless) and choose your pattern repeat (how often, or over how many millimetres the pattern is repeated, which you may need your decorator’s assistance with).

They then prepare your chosen fabric; print your design with European dyes; steam it; prewash it to remove excess ink and finally hot-wash your tailor made textile to set the dye and preshrink it. This means the fabric is colour fast and completely machine washable.

Once dry, they roll it back into a 10 metre roll and send it on its way – ready to become a curtain, bed linen set or feature occasional chair.

What will you do with so much fabric freedom?

The minimum you can print per fabric type is only 3 metres (that’s literally only enough for a small blind or occasional chair), but what’s even better is you can print different designs onto those 3 metres, so you can use the pieces for a set of scatters, different children’s rooms, or whatever you like – it’s your masterpiece!

It's always important to make sure the fabric you plan on using for upholstery, or heavy sun exposure, will be able to stand the test of time... or the the bump or UV test. If you have a décor masterpiece in mind, but need a little help putting it together and executing it, we’d love to be a part of that process.

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Nipples. Let’s talk about the perky, pink wonders that hold unknown power and intrigue. Just to be clear, we’re talking about female nipples here. ⠀
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They’re a little like snowflakes in that no two are alike (even on the same woman, frustratingly) and no two women have the same feelings when looking at their own nipples. Hopefully, by the time you reach your thirties you have been blessed with either an adoring partner or nursing child to help you look on your own nipples tenderly, realising for yourself the importance of these tiny bits of flesh.⠀
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Nobody realises their importance more acutely than the woman who has lost one or both her nipples with a mastectomy. And perhaps, to an extent, Cara du Plessis who hand makes realistic adhesive prosthetic silicone nipples. ⠀
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“It’s something small,” says Cara, “but it can have an actual impact on someone’s life. The idea that this product could be that last bit of confidence a woman needs to say ‘Now I am done with breast cancer,’ means so much to me.”⠀
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Women who are able to afford breast reconstruction will often have it done during the mastectomy, but getting reconstructed nipples and tattoos means additional costs and further painful surgeries for them. Pain free and affordable nipples, however, was something Cara could make with confidence and it’s a place where the unique hand-made quality of each piece is a definite advantage. ⠀
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The long and the short of them⠀
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A pair of Perky Pinks will set a breast cancer survivor back a mere R1,999 and could last for years if taken care of properly. They come in three different sizes and five different shades. The adhesive is waterproof, meaning you can keep them on for 3 – 5 days and swim and shower with your gorgeous new nipples without the fuss of reapplying them daily. The set comes with 10 ml of FDA approved adhesive, suitable for sensitive skin; as well as a handy handbag-ready 5ml adhesive; application brush; 50 ml spray-on remover solution; alcoholic cleansing wipes and a booklet. ⠀
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For more information, or to purchase a pair, visit the Perky Pinks at buff.ly/2BFwObb

“And I wonder: Have I squandered my dogness?... Have I made a mistake by anticipating my future and shunning my present?” - The Art of Racing in the Rain, Garth Stein
#jolabokaflodclub

Well that’s finally done! Here’s to my newly established family Jolabokaflod-club. #books #reading “Whatever our struggles and triumphs, however we may suffer them, all too soon they bleed into a wash, just like watery ink on paper.” - Memoirs of a Geisha, Arthur Golden

And here’s why we must all wear sunscreen. I can’t stress this enough.

The kiss of the sun for pardon,
The song of the birds for mirth,
One is nearer God's heart in a garden
Than anywhere else on earth.